The Inner Game

The Inner Game

Timothy Gallwey's observations during while coaching tennis led him to believe that what prevents people from realising their full potential is largely down to our internal conversations. This conversation is between what he refers to as Self 1 and Self 2.

Self 1 is the voice in your head that comments on most of the things you do. It may set expectations, issue commands, tell you how things are or simply what you can and cannot do. Self 1 is a constant distraction from whatever task or thought process you are trying to achieve.

Self 2, on the other hand, is simply you, with all your innate mental and physical abilities and experience. Self 2 is the one who performs all the actions.

The simple fact is that Self 1 does not trust Self 2 to do things right. So Self 1 gives advice and pointers but, while Self 2 is busy listening to Self 1, it is no longer focused on the task in hand. Self 2's performance of the task is therefore not at its best. This idea is captured in the following model:

Performance = Potential — Interference

Interference affects the process of performing any action and is particularly prevalent when you are learning a new action or behaviour. The interference starts with your perception of your environment - "Oh no! Here comes....!" making it a threat. Your response can be awkward, rushed, non-committal, fearful or defensive in response to the stream of instruction or comments running through your head. You then appraise the results judging how well or not so well the action was performed. This in turn influences how effective you think you are with regards to such actions and situations. This self-image then goes on to affect your perception next time a similar situation arises.

The key is to break this cycle of interference. What Gallwey noticed was that most traditional sports coaching is focused on breaking the cycle at the point of response, which for Gallwey is not the root of the problem. The threat starts with the individual's perception of the situation. In the case of tennis players, the ball or a difficult shot, is perceived as a threat.

To find out more about the Inner Game, download our reusable learning resource.